3 replies to this topic

[neglectedtorana]

Hi All,

 

My car is an LX 4 door with LS1 and manual, when I first put it together with Kings low springs it looked a bit high and I went for the super low and it looked great but didn't have enough ground clearance and the front lower control arms were angled up from the mounting bushes toward the stub axle. I had to make it a bit taller for engineering and the ground clearance and put the Kings low springs back in.

 

Currently it looks good, I would prefer it a little lower in the front even just 1/2" would be great but I don't want to have a weird control arm angle.

Roughly at what angle should the control arms be when sitting at ride height?

 

I have thought about standard height springs and Stubteck drop stub axles but am unsure about moving the bottom of the control arm 2" closer to the ground.

I could cut half a coil off the front springs for the desired ride height but then might have that upward angle on the control arm which may not be desirable.

 

I have read old threads about Stubteck stuff and think they are quality products but not sure how practical, if they had a 1" drop I would be more inclined as it would give the extra clearance between the bottom of the lower control arm and the road/pot holes.

 

What are my options?

Does the angle of my current setup look ok?

 

Cheers, Tom

 

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[Bigfella237]

Control arms typically angle upward (toward the outside), especially as you start increasing the overall tyre diameter and lowering the suspension to compensate.

 

Have a look at the angle of the spring seat in the lower control arm and line it up with the centreline of the coil spring, it should be roughly perpendicular to the spring, allowing for the pigtail end of the coil of course.

 

Drop spindles have their place, as you say they give less ground clearance for the control arm itself but they do allow you to lower the ride height without sacrificing so much suspension travel. Still, it's an expensive way to go and if the stubs aren't specifically designed for the application (KPI, steering arm position, caliper mounting, etc.) they can cause you some headaches.

 

Normally I'd only consider drop spindles if using bigger diameter wheels... where one kinda cancels-out the other, but that's just me.

 

I would give King Springs a call and tell them what you need, preferably give them your final corner weights if you're able to, and tell them you need a ride height halfway between "Low" and "Super Low". They should be happy to reset one of the spring sets you have for you and I'd be surprised if they even charged you to do it (beyond freight costs each way at least).

 

I wandered into Selby's in Sydney one Saturday morning many years ago expecting to simply buy a set of springs off the shelf for a speedway car I was building, but happened to be served by Don Selby himself who sat me down and asked me twenty questions then wandered back into the factory and made me a custom set of springs there 'n then!

Edited by Bigfella237, 31 December 2020 - 10:37 AM.

[neglectedtorana]

Hi Andrew,

 

Thanks, will take a look at the spring seat angle. I did speak to Kings and they will reset mine, I think it was going to cost about $80.

I also can put the super low springs back in with spacers to see if I get the result I want. My main concern is lowering too much and upsetting geometry, when I had the super low springs in before I thought the steering ends were pointing upward too much, I didn't notice it driving just looked weird.

 

Sounds like a good outcome from your chance meeting with Don,

[rexy]

The beauty of the drop spindles is that they preserve all your suspension geometry.

 

If you are running over bumps or holes big enough to put the lower control arm in danger then you should keep a sharper look out!

On most LH/LX the exhaust, crossmember and gearbox crossmember are the lowest points on the car.